A Mortiss is a worm-like creature native to wildspace in the Spelljammer campaign setting.[1]
Overview[]
Mortiss are worms native to wildspace that bore through vegetable and mineral matter, and consequently are a grave threat to most spelljammer ship hulls. The worms can only thrive in wildspace since the gravity planes and oppressive air envelopes of most moons and worlds prove fatal after a month of continued exposure. Though most spacefarers refer to mortiss as the "termites of wildspace", most scholars draw a closer analogy to aquatic coral.[1]
Description[]
Mortiss superficially resemble aquatic shipworms, but are in fact unsegmented roundworms with a dorsal and ventral rib. They are eyeless, sensing their environment through smell and vibration, and have a collar of leathery tendrils ringing their heads. In addition, they have a poisonous stinger at the top of their heads and can extrude two pairs of opposing jaws to latch onto and suck blood from prey. Mortiss young are about two inches long, while adults may grow to a length of six feet. The mortiss create colonies of up to 100 individuals, and can add to or replenish their numbers as they consume material.[1]
Behavior[]
Mortiss infestation may result from a ship colliding with egg casings, from bringing mortiss-infested objects on board, or from docking near a mortiss-infested asteroid or ship for several hours. Mortiss can cause up to 3 points of hull damage per week, and they may also infest the upper decks and lower hold after boring through the hull. Burrow tubes begin to appear within three to four weeks, always on the side of the ship that receives the most light. As with termites, burrows weaken the decks and superstructure, causing decking and supports to break when excessive weight is applied to the infested area. Mortiss infestations may be destroyed by fire, while a cure disease spell can destroy a 10 by 10-foot area of infestation.[1]
Combat[]
Mortiss will attack any creatures that try to destroy their burrows. They may sting the invading creatures with their head spines, causing minimal damage but injecting a powerful poison that can result in the victim suffering from delusions as a side effect. Those afflicted with delusions begin to perceive dangers as greater or less severe than they really are, or they may experience hallucinations of being elsewhere, shutting out reality altogether. Victims suffer from delusion for up to 6 hours, though they may attempt to consciously reject the delusions for what they are, though multiple mortiss stings make this more difficult.
Mortiss may also lunge at a victim, latching onto them with their jaws and draining their blood. A mortiss colony may number as many as 100 individual worms, and up to six mortiss can attack an intruder for every five-foot-square area of the infested area they traverse.[1]
Habitat[]
Mortiss generally do not get along with other life-forms. However, certain creatures native to wildspace appear to be able to coexist with mortiss just fine, including scavver, krajen, kindori, and elmarin. In fact, a mortiss colony is able to replenish the air envelope of the celestial body or ship it is infesting, encouraging predatory wildspace creatures to lair among the mortiss, waiting for prey to wander near.
Mortiss are able to convert light energy into magic which enhances their ability to burrow through wood and rock as if it were soil. The digested material is converted into a clay-like material which they use to construct coral structures on top of their burrows. Early infestations of mortiss may go undetected, until the stone-like tubes appear on the hull. Left to their own devices, mortiss will fully encase a ship within a year, destroying the hull. Scholars hypothesize that many asteroids, and perhaps even some smaller moons, may contain mortiss' colonies at their heart.
Mortiss are hermaphroditic and mutually fertilize each others egg casings. Casings are then deposited on spelljammer hulls to hatch within a week of laying. Mortiss egg cases resemble geodes.
Mortiss can burrow through wood and stone at a rate of one yard for every ten minutes. However, they need to bask in light for up to an hour before they can continue burrowing. They cannot store more than an hour's worth of energy, meaning that they must return to the surface after an hour of burrowing to soak up more light energy.
A mortiss colony can cover a five-foot-square area for every individual in the colony. In addition, for every 4 individuals, the colony can construct a ten-foot-square structure to a height of up to 6 feet.[1]
Spelljammers[]
Spelljammers should check their hulls regularly, and periodically make landfalls of a month or more to rid their vessels of these parasites.[1]
Appendix[]
External Links[]
- Mortiss article at the Forgotten Realms Wiki, a wiki for the Forgotten Realms campaign setting.
- Mortiss article at the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd Edition Wiki, a wiki for official Dungeons & Dragons content from 2nd edition AD&D.